1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to restraining devices used in conjunction with health care procedures and, more particularly, is concerned with a security blanket for restraining a person who has an intravenous tube (IV) or is in traction for a fracture.
2. Description of the Prior Art Patients, particularly infants and children, typically have to be restrained in some manner to prevent movements which would be detrimental to administering certain types of health care treatments to them. For instance, certain body and arm movements of a patient can interfere with a traction arrangement or can result in removal or infiltration of an IV, causing complications in recovery. Another application for a restraining device would be for children with burns and skin graphs, where restraints are essential to help eliminate wound infections and to keep graphs in place for optimal healing.
However, for a restraining device to be effective, it should not over-restrain the patient, that is, restrain those movements by the patient which would not detrimentally affect the health care treatment. Over-restraint can make the patient more uncomfortable than is necessary and thus reduce his or her ability to tolerate the device for an extended period of time. Over-restraint can also create fear and anxiety, particularly in the case of young patients. Finally, devices which over-restrain a patient typically lack versatility, making them incompatible with the performance of many types of medical procedures.
Absent from the prior art is a restraining device which is comfortable for the patient while, at the same time, effective in restraining only those movements of the patient's torso and arms which would interfere with health care treatments, such as IV therapy or application of traction to a fracture. In fact, no prior art restraints are presently available for children with orthopedic conditions requiring traction for extremities. Restraints are imperative for these children to prevent them from pulling out of alignment with their traction. Also, the child's movements should be carefully controlled during the healing process so that the fractures are held in the correct position for the best possible healing.
Representative of various restraint devices in the prior patent art are the ones disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. to Cataldo (2,486,114), Taylor (2,888,009), Storey (3,181,530), Cabansag (3,933,154) and Jordan (4,050,737). These devices are designed to serve different purposes, such as protecting an infant during sleep, immobilizing a child for x-ray and surgical procedures, and restraining a person to a sitting position in a chair. While many of these prior patent art devices generally serve the limited purposes for which they are designed, they do not appear to be suitable for use in conjunction with the types of health care treatments mentioned above.
Consequently, a need exists for a device particularly adapted for minimally restraining the torso and arms of a patient, such as a child, undergoing health care treatments, such as IV therapy or traction.